Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda dies – dead at 86
Oct 24, 2014; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants former player Orlando Cepeda before game three of the 2014 World Series against the Kansas City Royals at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Baseball Hall of Fame member Orlando Cepeda died on Friday night at the 86, 10 days after his fellow Giants legend Willie Mays died.
The Giants announced the news about Cepeda during their game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Oracle Park in San Francisco, Calif. They held a moment of silence in honor of Cepeda during the game:
#SFGiants announce the passing of Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda at the age of 86 and honor him with a moment of silence. pic.twitter.com/SCXmTr5HiM
— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) June 29, 2024
Cepeda played from 1958-1974 and spent his first nine seasons with the Giants. He won NL Rookie of the Year as a 20-year-old with the Giants in 1958. The Puerto Rican slugger was named an All-Star six straight years from 1959-1964.
Cepeda was then traded to the St. Louis Cardinals and won NL MVP with them in 1967, the same year he won his lone World Series. He was later traded to the Atlanta Braves and then the Oakland A’s, and he finished his career with the Red Sox and then the Royals.
Cepeda’s best statistical season came in 1961 when he batted .311 with a .609 slugging percentage and .970 OPS. He bashed a league-high 46 home runs and drove in 142 runs that season.
Here is a video shared by the Giants about Cepeda:
Orlando Cepeda, a #ForeverGiant 🧡🖤 pic.twitter.com/LcacFSDSK2
— SFGiants (@SFGiants) June 29, 2024
